Advice and Tools
For every step of your Ostomy Journey
SASS aims to advocate and align the standard of Stoma care and services across South Africa which will be applicable to both the private and public sectors.
Ostomy Care
Tips and Tricks
The South African Society of Stomates (SASS) is a Non-profit organization formed by Ostomates across Southern Africa to facilitate a “holistic” approach to ostomy patient care by bridging the gap between the private and public sectors whilst advocating for the rights of fellow ostomates throughout the country.
SASS VALUE STATEMENT
SASS is dedicated to advocating for the rights and well-being of ostomates across South Africa. We strive to bridge the gap between private and public healthcare sectors, ensuring that all ostomates receive the highest standard of care.
Our mission is to provide comprehensive support, education, and resources to empower ostomates and their families, helping them navigate their new normal with confidence and dignity. By collaborating closely with clinicians and healthcare professionals, we ensure that our community receives expert care and guidance.
Aligning with global standards set by The International Ostomy Association (IOA), we aim to foster a community where every ostomate feels supported, informed, and valued.
Featured Topics
For Living with a Colostomy, Ileostomy or Urostomy
Help us achieve
What we set out to achieve with YOUR help
GET EDUCATED
Medically reviewed surgery-specific information. Making sure you have access to the best possible care. Ostomy pouch management tips, diet & nutrition, skincare, sexuality, travel tips and more!
FEEL SUPPORTED
Support to you & your family whilst you transition into your new normal. You will have access to a local peer support group, where you can get answers to questions, or connect with our Facebook community.
BE AN ADVOCATE
We aim to advocate the standard of Stoma care across private and public sectors, whilst aligning with the global standards set out by The International Ostomy Association (IOA).
Meet Our Featured Speaker | Dr. Febẻ Bruwer
The South African Society of Stomates (SASS) is honored to welcome – Dr. Febẻ Bruwer, Clinical Nurse Specialist and Advanced Wound Care Practitioner from Johannesburg to the SASS 2026 National Conference.
A highly experienced Clinical Nurse Specialist and Advanced Wound Care Practitioner, she holds a PhD in Nursing, an MSc in Skin Integrity and Wound Management, with more than two decades of clinical expertise in complex wound care and patient management. A clinical investigator, educator, published author and Vice President of WHASA, she is actively involved in advancing evidence-based wound care through research, professional education, clinical trials and international collaboration.
Presentation:
Managing Complex, Non-healing wounds / Peristomal wounds when standard wound care fails in Pyoderma Gangrenosum, Vasculitis, Malignancy, etc.
Join Dr. Febẻ Bruwer as she explores managing wounds in patients on steroids, chemotherapy, biologics, or immunosuppressants. Treatment of atypical wounds versus the same wounds around stomas e.g. pyoderma gangrenosum, vasculitis, malignancy, etc. Why don’t chronic peristomal /wounds heal? Painful peristomal /wounds: assessment and management strategies. Consider prolonged, recurrent, or deteriorating peristomal /wounds and its management.
2–3 October 2026
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Woodstock, Cape Town
Register today: www.sass2026.co.za
#SASS2026 #StrongerTogether #ColorectalCancer #CancerAdvocacy #GlobalColonCancerAssociation #HealthcareLeadership #PatientCentredCare #CancerAwareness #HealthcareInnovation #SouthAfrica
Almost full. Grab your seat for SASS 2026 before it is too late
Register today - www.sass.2026.co.za
#StomaNurseExcellenceAwards #SASS2026 #StrongerTogether #StomaNurse #OstomyCare #NursingExcellence #PatientCare #HealthcareHeroes #CompassionInCare #SouthAfrica #ostomychallenge #ostomyevent #sassconference
Meet Our Featured Speaker | Dr. Ethel Andrews
The South African Society of Stomates (SASS) is honored to welcome – Dr. Ethel Andrews, Clinical Nurse Specialist, AWC and Stomaltherapist from Johannesburg to the SASS 2026 National Conference.
A pioneering nurse leader and the first South African nurse to hold a PhD in Burns, serving as the first non-surgeon President of the South African Burn Society and as Southern Africa’s representative and African Nurse Lead within the Pan African Burn Society. An internationally recognized burn and wound-care expert, researcher and educator, she contributes to leading global organizations including the International Society for Burn Injuries and Interburns, and is passionate advocate for advancing nursing practice, education and leadership worldwide.
Presentation:
Fundamentals in the Advanced Pathophysiology of chronic pressure injuries in the paraplegic patient and the need for fecal diversions for wound healing.
Join Dr. Ethel Andrews as she explores the management of pressure injuries, paraplegia and offloading strategies – why they fail in a resource limited environment (even in private industry), influence of comorbidities, diversion surgery and reversals in a multidisciplinary team.
2–3 October 2026
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Woodstock, Cape Town
Register today: www.sass2026.co.za
#SASS2026 #StrongerTogether #ColorectalCancer #CancerAdvocacy #GlobalColonCancerAssociation #HealthcareLeadership #PatientCentredCare #CancerAwareness #HealthcareInnovation #SouthAfrica
**36 STOMA NURSES RECEIVED ALMOST 300 NOMINATIONS from all over SouthAfricaand Namibia. SO MANY REASONS TO CELEBRATE. ❤️**
Behind every nomination is a patient story of appreciation!
A story of care, compassion, knowledge, advocacy and the difference one nurse can make in a patient`s life.
Sometimes, that difference means confidence.
Returning to work.
Getting back to life.
Finding love.
Or simply being able to live without a stoma defining what you can do.
And sometimes, it means a nurse who refuses to accept **“there isn`t any”** as the end of the conversation.
These are the moments that matter.
These reasons that **36 nurses** have been nominated, is recognized by a patient community.
All 36 will be celebrated.
**Only 3 will take home the awards.** 🏆 @ the
SASS 2026 Conference.
**Who will they be?**
Watch. Listen. Follow, and celebrate the nurses who are making a difference every day…
**so ostomates can live their lives to its full potential.**
#SASS2026 #NursesAwards #OstomyCare #PatientVoice #StrongerTogether
THE PATIENT`S VOICE SPEAKS VOLUMES. ❤️
Behind every nomination is a story.
A nurse who didn`t give up.
A nurse who restored confidence.
A nurse who helped someone learn to live with a stoma.
A nurse who saw the person, not just the diagnosis.
These stories tell us something important.
Ostomy care is complex.
It takes knowledge, skill, experience, and compassion to support someone through the challenges of living with a stoma.
And when nurses have those skills, the impact goes far beyond clinical care.
They can give patients confidence.
They can help patients regain independence.
They can make a difficult journey feel a little less difficult.
That is why the nominations matter.
The patient’s voice is telling us what CARE, COMPASSION, and CHANGE can look like in real life.
And SASS is listening.
#SASS2026 #NursesAwards #PatientVoice #StomaNursing #OstomyCare #NursingMatters #StrongerTogether
Meet Our Featured Speaker | Ms. Naila Edries
The South African Society of Stomates (SASS) is honored to welcome – Ms. Naila Edries, Lecturer, UCT Physiotherapy Department in Cape Town to the SASS 2026 National Conference.
An physiotherapy lecturer, clinical educator and researcher at the UCT, specializing in musculoskeletal physiotherapy, women’s health, pain management, rehabilitation and exercise promotion. With a strong research and clinical focus on physical activity and exercise in people living with a stoma, she brings an important multidisciplinary perspective to the SASS 2026 program.
Presentation:
UCT Research study outcome: Physical Activity and Behaviors in People Living with an Ostomy
Join Ms. Naila Edries as she explores the outcome of the study that was undertaken by the University of Cape Town’s Physiotherapy Department’s students.
2–3 October 2026
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Woodstock, Cape Town
Register today: www.sass2026.co.za
#SASS2026 #StrongerTogether #ColorectalCancer #CancerAdvocacy #GlobalColonCancerAssociation #HealthcareLeadership #PatientCentredCare #CancerAwareness #HealthcareInnovation #SouthAfrica
ALMOST 300 PATIENT VOICES ❤️
That is almost 300 reasons to stop and recognise the incredible nurses who care for people living with a stoma.
Behind every nomination is a message of appreciation for knowledge shared, problems solved, difficult moments made easier, and patients supported when they needed it most.
Because ostomy care can be complex.
It takes skill, knowledge, experience, and compassion to care for complex patients, and when nurses have those skills, they can make an enormous difference to the people in their care.
Today, we celebrate 35 eligible nominees who have been recognised through the SASS Nurses Awards.
Not because every nominee will take home an award.
But because every nomination tells us something important about the value of skilled ostomy nursing.
And perhaps that is the most important message of all:
We need more nurses equipped to care for complex patients, so that more patients can receive the support they deserve.
36 nominees.
Almost 300
PATIENT VOICES
And a powerful patient-led reminder of why skilled nursing matters.
Watch this space. 🏆
\https://www.sass2026.co.za/
#SASS2026 #NursesAwards #StomaNursing #OstomyCare #PatientVoice #StrongerTogether
Meet Our Featured Speaker | Mr. Ricardo Siljeur
The South African Society of Stomates (SASS) is honored to welcome – Mr. Ricardo Siljeur, Biokineticist from Cape Town to the SASS 2026 National Conference.
An accomplished Biokineticist, educator, researcher, and entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in rehabilitation, chronic disease management, and health promotion. As the founder of Ricardo Siljeur Biokineticists, the African Sport Training Academy, and pioneering the "Ostomates on the Move" program, he is dedicated to improving lives through innovative, evidence-based exercise and rehabilitation.
Presentation
Abdominal Post-surgical Integrated Care Pathways - ERA`s to reduce post-operative hospitalization, readmission rates, and enhancing long-term QOL.
Join Mr. Ricardo Siljeur as he explores the integration of breathing exercises directly post-operatively to prepare for mobilization with the focus on strengthening the abdominal core muscles to aid in prevention of surgical dehiscing, hernia formation, stomal prolapse, and the ability to integrate back into normal physical activities without the risk of long-term complications after discharge from hospital.
2–3 October 2026
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Woodstock, Cape Town
Register today: www.sass2026.co.za
#SASS2026 #StrongerTogether #ColorectalCancer #CancerAdvocacy #GlobalColonCancerAssociation #HealthcareLeadership #PatientCentredCare #CancerAwareness #HealthcareInnovation #SouthAfrica
SASS Blog
What has been happening at SASS
SASS Stoma Nurse Excellence Awards 2026
Honouring Nurses Who Change Lives Behind every ostomate’s journey is often a nurse who made an impossible moment feel manageable.A nurse who provided dignity during uncertainty.A nurse who offered reassurance, compassion, education, and hope. The SASS Stoma Nurse Excellence Awards were created to recognise and celebrate stoma nurses who go above and beyond in supporting […]
SASS2026 Conference: Multidisciplinary Ostomy Care Conference in South Africa
The South African Society of Ostomates (SASS) will host the SASS2026 Conference at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Cape Town, bringing together healthcare professionals involved in the care and rehabilitation of people living with a stoma. The conference is designed as a multidisciplinary clinical platform, supporting knowledge-sharing across nursing, physiotherapy, biokinetics, dietetics, occupational therapy, and […]
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